Reunions, killers and the newby
by titansfan1211
Summary: Penguin is the first of the Arkham escapees to appear in Jump City. Along with the criminal Gothamites come returning Jump criminals- and Tim Drake. Will Robin be able to handle the extra drama along with a blast from the past? B:TAS X-over
1. Bird Reunion

It started out with a normal day. That is, until crime started acting up. You see, crime is usually somthing normal that my friends and I, the teen titans, handle every day. We've defeated just about every villain, not counting Slade who was still out there.

We were all lounging around in the living room, Raven reading, Cyborg playing video games with a half asleep Beastboy, and Starfire cooking, er... somthing. I was filing some boring old police report, thinking about how boring the day was going to be. Boy, was I wrong or what. The signal went off causing Beastboy to jump up in shock.

Immediately I hopped onto the supercomputer to see who was causing trouble now. "Which idiots are dumb enough to cause trouble now?" asked Raven.

"I don't know, but they're stealing from the ancient bird exibit at the Jump City Meuseum. I'll tap into the security..." I typed in a few codes, and once I saw the culprit, I blinked in shock. "I don't believe it...what's he doing here?" I noticed the confused stairs of my friends. "Titans, go!"As my team left to go stop the man, I lingered behind for a moment.

"Everything alright?" asked Raven. I guess she sensed my confusion.

"Yea, just an old enemy from Gotham... just wonder what he's doing here..." she shrugged, and we both went out the door. Once we arived at the scene, I just stood there dumbly for a second.

"Ok, dude, who the heck is this guy?" asked Beastboy. I was about to say somthing about how stupid he was that he didn't know who this was, but then I remembered he didn't grow up in Gotham. Though the way he was dressed and the fact that he was stealing from a bird exibit did kind of give it away...

Ignoring Beastboy's question, I asked, "Penguin! What are you doing here? Don't you usually go bug people in Gotham when you break out of Gotham?"

"I usually do, but I got sick of Batman the girl and you sending me back to Arkam every time, so I came here instead! I heard the city was protected by a bunch of kids led by you! Of corse, I didn't believe that you could lead here, I mean, you've been in Gotham anyway! So, what are you doing here boy blunder?"

I growled at the old nickname, given to me so graciously by the Joker. "What am I doing here? Stopping you! Just like old times! Titans GO!" as I faught Penguin, I attempted to get the umbrella from him, but I also thought over what he said. He talked as if I had faught him recently, but I hadn't seen him in years. What ever.

Penguin called for his 'helpers' and the tabukke twins (AN: or wat ev there names r) came out of nowhere and started to attack my friends. It was a pretty even fight, until my friends started to put their powers to good use. I shot out my grapple, which shot out and wrapped around his umbrella, which promptly turned into a gun. Before he could shoot, I yanked the umbrella away, making him defenceless. I gave him a few good punches, and knocked him out. After I cuffed him, I turned around to see how my friends were fairing.

After narrowly missing a blow from one of the twins, Beastboy shouted, "Ya could of mentioned the razor sharp nails dude!" I rolled my eyes, and went over to help him. A few minutes later, we had each one of them cuffed and ready to be shipped back off to Arkam. We got back to the tower, and my friends (with the exception of Raven) immediately bombarded me with questions.

"Dude! Who was that guy?"

"Yea, and why was the dude here? I thougth he was from Gotham man!"

"Please, how do you know this Penguin?"

"That would be Penguin, also known as Ozwald Cobblepot. Usually he steals in Gotham, so I'm not sure why he's here. I guess because of the bird exibit. He only steals bird related items. And I know him because I used to fight him back when I lived in Gotham a while ago. He's not really anyone major."

"But why would he come here? He could've waited till the exibit came to a closer city."

"You're asking me to explain the actions of a mad man?"

"Point taken. By the way, nice nickname, _Boy Blunder! _hahahahah!"

I sent a death glare over at Cyborg and Beastboy, who immediately shut up. "DON'T call me that. EVER."

"Why not Robin? It is a most amusing nickname, is it not?"

"No nickname is a good one when it's given to you by the Joker, right after he loures you into a trap in which you almost get your secret identity revealed to the entire city."

"Oh." Suddenly, the alarm went off. again.

"Trouble!" Starfire yelled, as she raced over to the screen. She got a troubled expression on her face, then called me over. "Please, this is another new villain. Whom is it? Do they come from the dwellings of Gotham as well?"

I looked over at the screen, and immediately I freezed. My face paled, and my breathing became shallow. I had really bad memories with this guy. My voice faltered as I answered,"It's... It's..."

**Well who is it? I guess you'll have to wait till the next chapter to find out! But I think I could make a point to update faster if you reviewed. wink wink nudge nudge. Thanxs for reading!! :)


	2. knifes, faces and phones

"Twoface." I spat the mans name in disgust, though inside I was trembling with fear. I have too many scars from my first encounter with Harvey Dent. It was when I had just become Robin, I was almost killed. He had brutally beaten me. NOT. PLESANT. That was the first time I almost died as a hero, and also the first time Batman wanted me to stop crime fighting.

"Ok titans, Twoface is a lot more dangerous than he seems, and he probably will have a few thugs and some guns for hire. If he pulls out a coin to make a decision, get it from him. Without it, he'll be confused for a second and we will be able to take him down."

"Kay dude, lets go!"

My friends all nodded in agreement, and ran out of the Ops Room." While Starfire and Beastboy flew, Cyborg and Raven took the T-car, and I took my motorcycle. After a minute or two of driving way over the speed limit, I got there. My friends were all still on their way.

"Wadda ya want Harvey!?" He turned to look at me.

He smiled, and I internally cringed. "Well, if it isn't the little birdie boy! Miss me?" I shot him a look clearly stating "No." My friends were starting to show up, but stayed back waiting for an order. "What, need back up now that you don't have batsy to save you? Well, I guess after my first one on one session with you, you need back up. Im actualy surprised a wuss like you showed up!"

That was it. I ran up to him and punched him in the stomach. It did little harm to him, and he punched me in the face, causing me a bloody nose. Great. This was turning out just like last time... He threw another punch at me, and I did a backflip to dodge. I noticed his thugs coming out of hiding. "Titans, Go!"

"titans, go!" he mocked, which got me pissed off. "what kinda saying is that? even batman had better lines than you, and he didn't even talk!" He got another punch to the stomach, and stumbled back. He was being jerkier than usual, so I smashed him upside the head with my bo staff. He got a hold on my cape and started to strangle me with it.

I unlatched the cape,and feeling much lighter, (the cape is pretty heavy,) turned back to face him. My friends all came up behind me, having knocked out all of his 'helpers'. Starfire and Cyborg got their starbolts and cannon ready, BB turned into a bull, and I didn't see Raven. I knew she was around though. Since he's so impatient, Beastboy charged at Twoface, who sidestepped. BB ran into a wall. Cyborg and Star were mad that he hurt Beastboy, and they each attacked him, but he managed to hurt them instead. They were all on the ground. Where was Raven?

_get him to take out the coin, and I'll go from there. _Said Raven through our bond. I nodded, hoping she could see me.

"So, twoface, you get tired of Arkam, or did Arkam get tired of looking at your ugly face!" He growled and lunged at me, but I used my **grappling hook **(A/N:better?) to get out of the way. He ran over to me, and I let him pin me down. I wasn't worried until he pulled out a knife.

"oh, this'll be the end of you bird boy! I came all this way and I'm gonna finish the job I started 7 years ago!"

"Wait! How bout, good side up you let me and my friends go, and bad side you can kill me with no interuptions. Deal?" He nodded, and took out his double headed coin. I sure hoped Raven knew what she was doing... He threw the coin up... and it never landed.

"What?" in his confusion, I slid out of the way. I looked at the coin, which was surounded in a black aura.

"Looks like it was good side up. You're going to jail twoface." He scowled at Raven.

"You cheated! And cheaters get consequences!" Before anyone knew what was going on, he pulled out a switchknife and threw it at me. As I dropped to the ground, I felt it graze my back. It stung. Bad. My friends stumbled up to stop him, but he was faster. He raced towards me, and as past memories flooded my mind, he pounded me into the next milenium. He found his knife on the ground and slashed it accross my back. I screamed in pain, and Starfire grabbed his arm and knocked him unconcioius.

After he was given to police custody, I sped off on my r-cycle to go patch myself up. As I left, I heard the others talking.

"Should I not go to help him? He may need my assistance, and If he is-"

"No." Raven cut in. "He probably wants to be alone. His pride was wounded as well, and if he needs medical care I'll take care of him later. I can't now anyway. I need to meditate." Starfire agreed, and they followed the guys to the pizza shop.

After I bandaged my knife cuts, I got on the super computer. I had a phone call to make. A few minutes later, my call connected. I really wasn't looking forward to this call. Well, until I saw who answered. Once I saw her I couldn't help but smile. I hadn't seen her in how long? Three years? four? Too long. For a little while I just sat and watched her closely. I started to space out, until she spoke. "Di-Dick? Is, Is that realy?" I nodded, my smile growing larger.

"Yep! It' me! How are ya doing, Babs!"

OOOOOOOH! Drama, bad guys and batgirl!! What will be next? I guess you'll have to wait and see! Any ideas you can send to me in a review or a PM!! Thanxs for reading!!!!


	3. The new kid on the block

Anyone who actually is still reading this, kudos to you! I've been kinda busy, and haven't updated in a while. Oh well. Here goes!

"Oh. My. Gosh! Richard John Grayson, where have you been? I'm so glad to see you finaly! It's been how long? Just... wow. Ya look taller." I smiled at how Babs could just jump around from topic to topic without missisng a beat. "So, whats up? Usually people don't just disapear for a few years and randomly show up." I cringed internaly at her wording, feeling the sting behind the words. She was happy to see me yes, but I could tell deep down she was still pissed off at me for leaving Gotham in the first place.

I heard a muffled voice in the backround, followed by Barbara hitting something or someone off screen with her elbow. "Ow!" I was kinda confused.

"What's going on? Who are you with?" suddenly I got it. "You're not with HIM are you?" I couldn't bare to say the mans name. Bruce, uh, I mean, Batman The name is like acid burning on my tounge.

I heard a voice call out from the backround, "Yea, cause Bruce wears stuff that isn't black and plays jabs with people." Barb nudged the unseen person again, who sounded like a young kid.

Before I got a chance to ask who he was, Barbara interupted. "So, why'd ya call? Something tells me it wasn't to chit chat with Bruce."

"Yea, as if! Actually, I need a list of all the criminals that have been let out of, or broken out of Arkam Assylum recently."

"Mind telling me why?"

"Some Gothamites have been showing up here, within hours of each other. I need to know who else might be showing up for a surprise visit, you know, just in case..." my mind wondered back to the many encounters both of us have had with Scarecrow's fear toxins, and Joker's laughing gases - neither of which are fun.

"Sure! I'll have it in a sec." I watched as she typed in the search to the computer in the Batcave, which makes Cyborg's computer look like a 5th grade science project.

"Ok, and... got it! Riddler... Scarecrow, Ivy, Joker. Penguin and Twoface also, but you and your friends already took care of those two, right?"

"His friends? You mean the teen titans!" called an excited voice from the backround. The owner of the voice suddenly popped up on the screen. He was a boy who appeared to be around fourteen. "That's so cool that you get to work with them! Especially as their leader! Sweet! But why would all the baddies be popping up in Jump City? Isn't that on the other side of the country? Oh, I'm Tim, by the way." Barbara shoved him to the side, glaring at me.

"Of course it's on the other side of the country! Did you really think he would even consider moving somewhere drivable?" I was about to appologize again, but thought better of it. Time to bring back the old Barbara I knew and loved.

"Well what did you expect? I _was _a traveling circus gypsy for the first nine years of my life _Babs._" She grit her teeth.

"Don't call me Babs, circus boy!"

"Babs, Babs, Babs..." I started in a sing-songy voice.

"Oh, you are soooooooo gonna get it twerp!" I smirked.

"Back to buisness." Batgirl said, trying (but not succeeding) to keep a straight face. "Do you know of any motive they might have?"

"Not a clue. Unless all the Gothamites decided they wanted a reunion or somthing. Penguin was trying to get some bird artifact, naturally. He said he was sick of you guys always catching him. Thought he'd have better luck here. But he did make it seem like we've faught recently in Gotham, but this was the first I've heard or seen of him in years. Then Twoface... he said he wanted to finish the job he started, and proceeded to throw knives at my head."

"Well that sounds lovely."

"Yea. So, that Tim kid, who is he? Why is he in the batcave? And not that I want any reunions or anything, where the heck is Bruce?"

"Oh, I'm-"

"He's no one important." Babs cut in.

"Hey!"

"Bruce is on a buisness trip." I looked at her in disbelief. "No, really. Bruce Wayne billion gajillionare buisness. Not chasing some criminal."

"'Billion gajillionare'? Looks like _somebody_ needs to go back to school." She stuck her tounge out at me. "Seriously though, what's with Tim? Or who is he, is probably the better question seeing as he's **in the Batcave**." Tim opened his mouth to speak up, but Barb cut him off again.

"Like he said, his name's Tim Drake. He's... a new kid, if you're catching my drift." I realized what she meant almost immediately.

"So Tim, how'd you end up in the big happy bat family?"

He laughed a little. "It's a funny story actually, you see I..."

"It's irrelivant." Batgirl interupted. I rolled my eyes.

"Come on Babs! Let the kid talk! Any time he talks, it seems you find a way to shut him up again!"

"Thank you! Anyway, as I was saying, it all started about eight years ago. I was a huge fan of yours, and-" It was my turn to cut him off.

"Eight years ago? I wasn't even Robin yet back then. I was still normal- well, as normal as a circus kid could be."

"I know. I was a major fan of _Richard Grayson _worlds youngest trappeeze artist, not Robin. I took a picture with you and your parents, that... last show. But I doubt you'd remember. After all, I'm sure countless people have tried to get pictures with you, since you were in a world famous act."

"No, I remember! I knew you looked familiar from somewhere! And actually, you were the only one crazy enough to get near any circus freaks like me."

"Cool! I'll have to get you a copy of that picture eventually... anyway, like I said, I was at that final show. I had been keeping newspaper articles on you, and on Haley's Circus. Haley's was the first circus I'd ever been to, 2 years before."

"Like your own little stalker!" Tim rolled his eyes at Batgirl.

"I was NOT a stalker. Anyway, once Robin came on the scene, I was fasinated. I saw the first ever sidekick in action!"

"And what was I? Chopped liver?" exclaimed Batgirl.

"No, but you made it very clear from the start that you were not working for Batman. Well, at the time anyway. But one time, when you were chasing someone over in my area of town, which wasn't exactly a nice area, you made a mistake. No one else caught it, but you did a quadrouple flip between the rooftops. I knew that there was only one person in the entire world that could do that. Richard Grayson. So, I put two and two together!"

"It was that easy to figure out?" I asked, bewildered. He had to have been how old? Seven or eight?

"For a smart little stalker like him, yep!" Tim ignored the comment.

"So that explains how you figured out I was Robin, but what's that got to do with you joining the little bat clan?"

"I was about to get to that. Well, the city was different with you gone... darker, I guess you could say. Batman was too. So, I went to the manor, told Bruce I knew about you three. I told him that batman needed a r-" he cut himself off, trying to think of a different word. "Uh, sidekick. I voulenteered, and he trained me!" Man that kid was smart!

"I'm not going to even attempt to understand how you convinced Bruce to train you... but how'd you figure out about Babs?"

"Well, how many other blue eyed, red haired olympic trainees do you know that would be crazy enough to get tangled up with Batman?"

I smiled. "So it was a lucky guess."

"Pretty much say, where are the other titans?"

"There out getting pizza."

"And you aren't? I thought you told me you wouldn't get all mopey like Bruce!" Teased Batgirl.

"Ha ha. Had to come here and call you two, in addition to wrap up some cuts and whatnot. And besides, the others practically live on pizza. I'm beyond sick of it. Oh, before I forget, has anyone major broken out of the normal jail recently? Just incase they decide to follow the trend out to California."

"Let me check." As Babs looked that up, I continued talking to Tim.

"So, what's your other name? Just please tell me it's not 'Batboy.'"

He was about to answer, when Babs anounced, "Ok! Hacked into the computer data base!" When she thought I wasn't looking, she sent Tim a death glare, who gave her an innocent look. Was I missing somthing? Tim looked over Barb's sholder as she scanned the list. Her eyes grew wide.

"Shit."

"Barb? What is it? Who got out?"

"Promise you won't do anything stuped or rash? 'Cause I have a feeling you aren't going to be too happy..."

"Yea, I promise! Who got out?" They shared another look.

Tim turned to me and spoke up. "Tony Zucco."


	4. storytime's revenge

I stood still, Babs and Tim watching me cautiously. I felt my blood boiling in rage. Of all the people to break out... it just had to be him, didn't it? The one man I swore revenge on. The man I searched for, for YEARS until I found him and brought him in. The man I almost broke my oath to Batman with. The man I had almost... well, I should have because now he was out of jail again, and others lives besides his own were on the line.

"I'm coming to Gotham."

"Dick, you promised you wouldn't do anything stupid. Me and Tim will handle him."

"No. I want to make sure he gets what's coming to him."

"Come on, Dick. Besides, who knows? He might follow the trend and go follow the other goons out to Jump City! Then you can go and catch him!"

"Not if we're too busy with the other criminals running around. Here, criminals don't stay in jail for more than a week or so. Then some of them we just can't catch in the first place..."

"Hey, I could come and help out in Jump so you can go after Zucco!" Tim exclaimed.

"Yea, that's a great idea!"

"Aren't you forgetting something?" Barb gave Tim a death glare.

"Eh, who cares about school? Besides, we only have a week left, and finals are over. I'll just say I'm going on vacation, or that I'm sick."

"That isn't what I meant, and you know it Tim." She gave him another look.

"Ok, look, either I'm missing something you aren't telling me, or something else is going on, so spill."

Babs started figiting around. "I don't know, maybe it'd be better if I came..."

"Barb, won't your dad be suspicious when his daughter disappears?"

"I'll tell him I'm going to visit friends or somthing-"

I cut her off. "In Jump. Where Batgirl will magically show up."

"I'll tell him I'm going somewhere else near by!"

"But won't he think it's weird that Batman left the city in the care of a 14 year old, instead of the much more experienced, 19 year old batgirl?"

"Well, uh... you make it sound like you don't want to see me!"

I rolled my eyes, knowing she only used the guilt card as a last resort. "Babs, I worked with you on a daily basis for like, how many years? I've never met Tim."

"Come on Barb! You know how badly I've wanted to meet the titans! Pleeeeeeeeeeeeease?" He begged, literally getting on his knees. She sighed, giving in.

"Fine. But you're dealing with any drama. And Bruce."

"Yes!" as he did a 'victory dance,' Barb rolled her eyes. "Anything goes even the slightest bit wrong, and I'm coming. Got it?" We both nodded, even though we knew we could handle things, especially with the help of my friends.

"Cool. So, when are you coming?"

"Um... I'm gonna leave probably tonight, and it takes about 95 hours to get there by car following the speed limit, but on a motorcycle weaving through traffic that'll cut traffic time in half, bringing it to about 60 hours or two and a half days... and since it's solar powered, that cuts gas stops, bringing it down to 58 hours... and I'll only need about one rest stop because I have no appetite, so that brings it to 54 hours, or two and a quarter days... and I won't stop at any hotels... 44 hours... and I will probably be traveling high above the speed limit, cutting that in half... I'll be there tomorrow night."

Babs and I stared at him, mouths gaping. "What?" I just shook my head, amazed at the kids math skills. Imagine how smart he'd be if he _did_ care about school.

"Um... okay... so are you coming in costume or civilian?"

"It'd probably be better if I came in civilian. Besides, it's not like it'd give anything away. I'm another average joe. So, where's the hideout? An apartment, or a warehouse, or-"

"It's a giant letter **T **on an island to the side of the city. Kinda hard to miss."

"Okay, well I'll see you tomorrow then!"

"Okay, later. Bye Barb!"

"Bye Dick." I signed off, and literally, a few seconds later the titans walked through the doors.

"Hey, dude. You ok? I saw Twoface pull out knives and stuff."

"Yea, I'm fine, thanks. Nothing too bad, just a couple of cuts."

"Do you want me to heal them?" Raven asked.

"No, it's not that bad. And besides, you need to save your energy for-"

"Man, I can see the bloody bandages from under your shirt- which happens to be RED."

"Are you sure you don't want me to just take a look?"

"No!" They jumped back, startled at my outburst. "Sorry. I'm just a little agitated. I'm fine."

"Please, Robin! Friend Raven only wishes to help! There is nothing to hide!"

I sighed, but agreed to let Raven heal me only partially. I had dealt with worse. She needed her energy if all of Gotham was coming. As she started to heal my cuts, she said, "You know, it'd be a lot easier to heal you if I could _see _what I was healing."

I started worrying then, knowing they'd freak if they looked at all my scars. "What are you saying?"

The empath rolled her eyes. "Quit being so modest wonder boy, and take of the stupid shirt." Okay, it was panic time. I couldn't let them see. But it would be suspicious if I refused. Starfire's words ran through my head. _There is nothing to hide... _I sighed, and pulled off my shirt. They all gasped as Raven pulled off the gauze.

"Dude... what happened?" Now my back and chest were out in the open, and my friends were seeing years worth of scars.

"I was born human, that's what happened. I was hesitant to fight Twoface today, because a lot of these scars are from him." Their eyes widened in shock, seeing the full extent of the damage he could pull off. Suddenly, Raven's gaze traveled to my shoulder. Crap.

"Robin... what happened to your sholder? It almost looks as if-"

"As if I was shot?" she nodded. "Yea. Because I was." Again, cue the googley eyes and the dropped jaws.

"But... who? What? Man, what happened? Whenever people shoot you here, you dodge it. You've never gotten hit."

"I've learned my lesson. Besides, that's different. Those are lasers. In Gotham, It was bullets. Batman didn't want me to go out on patrol that night, because Joker was out. Like that was going to stop me. we fought about it, ending with him getting mad at me, and speeding away in the Batmobile while I was stuck at home. I knew he'd need my help, becuase his henchman, Punch and Judy were out, along with his psychotic acrobat of a girlfriend, Harley Quinn."

"Wait, Joker has a girlfriend but I don't?" exclaimed Beastboy, with wide eyes. "Dude! Where's the justice in that?" I smirked at the changeling, and rolled my eyes.

"Sorry Beastboy, Harley's not really your type. She's at least ten years older than you, and before she was dating the Joker, she was a psychiatrist at Arkam."

"Gah! That's horrible!"

Raven rolled her eyes. "Anyways..." she prompted.

"So, since I knew Batman would need help, I went on patrol anyway, on my motorcycle. Only Batgirl knew I was out, because I called and asked if she was patroling that night. She wasn't, but she promised not to tell on me. I looked around Joker's usual haunts, expecting to find and catch up with Batman. Too bad for me, Batman wasn't there, but Joker was.

"It was really dark, but I didn't want to make my presence known by taking out a flashlight. I couldn't see or hear anyone. That is, until I heard Joker's horrible laugh, and the gun. I tried to run, but I didn't know I was running right into his line of fire. There was a shot, and after a second or two, I realized I had been hit. I passed out eventually from loss of blood.

"Meanwhile, Batman, who hadn't found the Joker, went back to the Batcave, hoping I might have an idea. Once he realized I wasn't there, he called Batgirl, and they went looking for me. I guess after a while they found me, because the next time I woke up, I was in the med area in the Batcave. They told me I was lucky.

"The bullet lodged into my shoulder a couple of centimeters away from hitting my heart. Also, if it had hit me a little bit farther to the right, I would have been paralyzed for life. Once Batman noticed I was awake, he started flipping out at me.

"I tried to explain that I was only trying to help, but that just made him more mad. He yelled, asking if getting shot was part of the plan. I yelled back that of course it wasn't, and he would've been hit just as easily. He told me I had disobeyed a direct order. I told him, that I was sick of dealing with how controlling he was, listening to his crap, and and living in his shadow, as Robin and as our alter egos. He decided that if I couldn't listen to him, then he'd have to fire me. I was forbidden from ever putting on my costume again."

Robin looked up, expression grim. "That was definately in my top ten worst moments. All I tried to dowas make him proud, but he only could see the negatives. At first I didn't think he was serious, and that he was over reacting. He had expressed numerous times to me and Batgirl the displeasure he had in putting us both in danger, being kids. Once I saw he was serious though...

"I was crushed. He was taking away one of the only things that mattered to me at the time. He was taking away my identity. Why do you think I never take the mask off? Over the years, my 'normal' life became the mask. Robin became who I am, and my other life was the fascade. He was taking away who I am, and I couldn't accept it. I was so upset, that I stormed out of the Batcave on my motorcycle, never once looking back.

"At the time, I was half hoping for him to follow me, to say he needed me, that he _wanted_ me to come back. He never did. I knew I wouldn't be missed, so I left the city." I looked up, for the first time noticing my friends shocked expressions. "So, trying to get as far away as I could legaly without leaving the country, I ended up here in Jump City, met you guys, and the rest is history." A silence followed the ending of my story, and I pulled my shirt on, not allowing Raven to heal me any more than she had. I knew she was tired, and she would need her strength if we fought another villain soon.

"So, dude, you were like, fired? Ow!" I saw Raven was the one who nudged Beastboy this time. I couldn't help but smirk at the irony. Now that I thought about it, Rae and Babs were kinda similar, accept for the fact that Raven had powers and was a loner, and Babs was kinda cheery and about three years older. They both loved to read though, and both could be very sarcastic. Tim and Beastboy though, they could be brothers almost, accept that Tim's a little bit... well, smarter. But they did only have a one or two year age difference...

"Hello? Robin, you in there?" Cyborg asked, knocking on my head.

"Huh? Oh!" I swatted his hand away. "Sorry, I was just thinking bout things. Oh, and I have some things to tell you guys." They all leaned foreward, knowing by my tone it wouldn't be good news. "So, I called Batgirl up in Gotham, to see what other criminals have escaped Arkam recently, so we'd be on the lookout for them. We have to watch out for Riddler, Scarecrow, Poision Ivy, Harley... and Joker." I swear, when I said the last name, their eyes grew to take up half their faces.

"Please, friend Robin. You are saying we may have to face this man of jokes which you have spoken of?"

"Yea, but not alone. Gotham's sending backup."

"Dude, sweet! Are you saying we get to meet Batman? Awesome!"

"NO. Beastboy, if you haven't noticed from the ending of the little story, we didn't exactly part on the best of terms. Trust me, you wouldn't want him here anyway. He's on a... buisness trip. For his alter ego."

"Oh, hehe, right. Oh! Oh! Batgirl then? I heard she's really pretty!"

"_No, _Beastboy... And you stay away from her!" I added as an after-thought. There was _no way_ I wanted Beastboy anywhere near Barb. One, because she was at least four years older than him, two, I used to date her, and I don't want to see her get hurt, and three, she's my closest friend, and now that we've broken up, is like a sister to me. Our relationship is what you would consider Cyborg and Raven's to be. Brother and sister. I guess you could say I was being over pretective, but still. I didn't want Beastboy near her. "Actually, it's a new kid coming. Name's Tim. He'll be here tomorow night."

"So, who is he anyway? His hero name, anyway." asked Raven.

"I'm not sure, Raven. Every time I started to ask, Babs-er, Barb-, uh, Batgirl, found some way to cut him off."

"Babs? Wait, was Batgirl like, you girl-"

"_Anyway_," I cut him off quickly, "They're sending Tim to help, not only because of all the extra psychos. There was another escape." Venom filled my voice as I spoke his name. "Tony Zucco."

"Ok man, I see why he'd come because of Joker comin, but what's that guy got to do with anything? I've never even heard of him! He sounds like just another villian, and I'm sure that the cops could-"

"No." I frowned, and my face showed how disgusted I was by the man. "I NEED to find Zucco, and make sure he is put back in jail where he belongs, or given the death penalty, or something. He's sneaky, and has many different aliases. I won't let him disapear, not this time..."

My friends frowned at me, seeing my obsessive nature come out. They hadn't seen me this worked up about a criminal since the Slade incident.

"Robin, why is it so important that you catch this Zucco guy? He's just a mob boss or a low key criminal or something, isn't he?"

"No, Raven. He is one of the most powerful mafia bosses in Gotham City. And why it's so important I catch him... it's personal. He messed with my family, and when we messed with his, he got revenge. Now it's my turn for revenge, which I _will_ get. No matter how long it takes to find him." I noticed Starfire send a worried look towards the rest of our friends, who just shrugged.

"Look. I spent five years of my life looking for him, and only after that, I found him and finaly got him in jail. Now, two years later, he just randomly breaks out. I _need_ to find him. He ruined my family, and so now I need to return the favor by ruining _him_."

"Wait, when you say family, do you mean Batman? Cause, isn't he, like, your fa-"

"Finish that sentence Beastboy, and I will snap your arm. No, I don't mean Batman, but the answer... it's not important. I'm gonna go get things ready... for Tim coming, and whatever." I walked out of the room, and went to my own to look for the antidotes of Joker's laughing gas, and Scarecrow's fear toxins. I carried them in my belt when I worked in Gotham, and now kept them in a locked drawer. I needed to make more of the antitoxins, get a guest room set up for Tim, and once that was done... Plot revenge on Tony Zucco.

**So, love it? Hate it? Let me know please!


	5. gymnastics, sparring and pasta

I woke up early the next morning. Correction. I_ got up _early the next morning. I didn't sleep. Thanks to Zucco breaking out, I couldn't get him, or my parents deaths off my brain. When I did finaly doze off, I had the nightmare again. The one I hadn't had in months. The one of my parents deaths.

Usually, I'd wake up right before they hit the ground, and wake up. When I was younger and still in the orphanage, before being taken in by Bruce, I would wake up from the nightmare, and think that it was just a bad dream, that it had never happened. That I would tell Jade, the palm reader at the circus, about it, and let her interpret it. But then I'd remember. It wasn't just a dream. It really did happen. I never could fall asleep after having that dream.

Bruce tried to teach me to control my dreams, realize that's all it was, and to change it. It didn't work. It only helped with Scarecrow's fear toxin. Shaking these thoughts away, I got up and took a quick shower, after beating the daylights out of an innocent punching bag. Cyborg would be pissed when he found out- that was the fourth time that month he had knocked the punching bag off the chain.

I spent an hour or so getting the guest room ready. It hadn't been used in years. Not since the whole master of games tournament. Years ago. It was still pretty early, so I decided to go back in the gym. This time though, I went to my real gym equiptment. Like, gym, as in gymnastics. I don't use it much around the other titans. I think they think it's kinda weird. Plus, it's a dead giveaway to my identity. I mean, I _was_ a trapeze artist and acrobat in the circus. So I use it early in the morning, or when the others are busy. I mean, I can't _not_ practice. I rely more on my acrobatics than they realize.

So I practiced on the unevenen bars, the balance beam, the rings. It wasn't till I took a break to rechalk my hands, that I noticed I had company. I jumped in surprise, seeing my team mates. "Um... when did you get here?"

"Dude, we've been standing here for like, ten minutes. You didn't notice?" he was obviously pleased that he had somehow managed to startle me. I shook my head.

"I kinda tune out everything around me when I'm working on the bars and beams and whatever." I say with a shrug. "What time is it?"

"It's seven thirty. Why do you think we're all here? We're supposed to spar with each other. It's Wednesday, remember?" asked Raven.

"Already?" I looked up at the clock, and sure enough it was that late.

"Well, unless you wana keep doing your gymnastics stuff... then we could all go back to sleep..." Beastboy said hopefully, with a yawn.

"Sorry, Beastboy. Not gonna happen." I say with a smirk.

"Darn..." We all set up the mats and boundaries, and pulled two names from the hat. To win, you had to knock your apponent out of the ring. First up, Starfire and Raven. Starfire could be a hard apponent, when she wanted to be. She didn't want to hurt her friends. After years, she finally got that it was fake fighting, and that if she ever did hurt anyone, we had a team medic. Raven. The fight went on, Starfire throwing starbolts, Raven blocking with a magic sheild. Then Raven throwing energy discs, and Starfire dodging. Raven attempted to infulge Starfire in her magic, but Starfire escaped. By now, both were very close to the edges of the ring.

"Mind the boundaries," I reminded. They nodded, and each stepped foreward a little bit. The fight went on, until finaly Raven tripped Starfire, by binding her ankles together when she was about to fly foreward. The result was Starfire falling outside of the circle. The buzzer rang out, signaling the end of the fight.

"You ok Starfire?" asked Raven.

"I am fine, Raven. Yourself?" She nodded. Both took a seat, sipping their water bottles.

Cyborg pulled two names out of the hat. "Next up... aw man. Me and Raven." Raven smirked to herself. Good reason too. Last time they had faught together, Raven did her creepy demon... thing, that she did to Gizmo, and he ran out of the ring, actually, out of the tower, screaming like a girl. This time though, she simply stood there, and let Cyborg charge foreward at her. At the last second, she stepped to the side, and he skidded to a stop, trying not to fall out of the circle. He spun around, and used his sonic cannon to blast at her. Like with the Starbolts, she dodged. This fight was a lot shorter, as Raven blasted him out of the circe. Again, the alarm went off. Cyborg went back to the hat.

"Okay, next up..." he smirked, and glanced over at me. "Robin and BB." I smirked, at the same time Beastboy groaned. These fights usually didn't end well. As we entered the ring, I noticed the look on Beastboy's face. Crap. It was one of his 'idea faces' that he got when he had a plan. Joy. The buzzer started, signaling the begining of the match.

I was surprised to find that he wasn't charging straight at me, like he usually did. He was waiting, trying to get me to make a move first. At least I've taught him something. Suddenly, he disapeared.

"Huh?" Then I saw a fly hovering towards me. I walked over to it. "Really, Beastboy?"

"Really!" suddenly, he changed back to human form, and did the last thing I accpected. He took. My. Mask.

"NOT funny Beastboy!" I yelled covering my eyes. "Give it back!"

"Nope! I'm not gonna give it back till you admit I beat you, and step out of that circle!" Ah. So this was his plan.

"Then I'll just have to fight you blind." I took my hand down from my face, and clenched my eyes shut. The others gasped.

"Dude! So you do have eyes! Well... eyebrows... and eye lashes... Gah!" He wasn't ready for the fist I sent in his direction. He jerked his head back, assuming I'd be aiming at his face. I stopped my fist about an inch from his face, and grabbed my mask back. I then kicked him out of the circle. The buzzer sounded. "Aww man! No fair!"

"What's no fair?" I asked, faking cluelessness.

"DU-UDE! My plan was perfect! Take your mask so you have to either open your eyes- which we still aren't sure exist- or step out of the circle and let me beat you! No fair!" I smirked.

"Beastboy, you forget. I was a sidekick in _Gotham _for crying out loud. You know how many times I was blindfolded and tied up? How many times people have tried to take my mask? I've learned to see without eyes."

"Which you don't have..." he grumbled. I smirked, and Raven suggested we all take a break for lunch.

"So, are we gonna go get pizza, or..." Cyborg trailed off, unsure. Starfire, Beastboy gagged, and Raven turned a little green.

"Please, may we not eat any more of the pizza? Just thinking of it gives me the zorktarian flubnars!" Starfire exclaimed.

"Ditto," said Raven, color returning back to normal.

"I'll cook." I offered, walking over to the kitchen. The others looked at me, eyes raised.

"_You_ cook? No offense man, but maybe we could go out for pizza anyways..." said Cyborg with a grin, scratching the back of his neck.

"You think I can't cook?" I asked with a smirk.

"Well..." He trailed off. Oh, I'd show him. I'd show all of them.

"Tell me what you think _after_ you taste it." I said with a smirk. I started pulling whatever wasn't fuzzy or stale out of the fridge and pantry. So far, all there was, was a couple of tomatoes, a box of noodles, some veggies and spices, and cheese. I smiled, knowing exactly what to make. Spagetti. I took off my gloves, and ignoring the gasps at all the scars, got to work.

The others watched as I sliced and diced, stirring things and mashing things and whatnot. After about twenty minutes, it was done. I put it down on the table in front of everyone, who, despite how good the meal smelt, were hesitant to try it. Eventually, they reluctantly tasted it. I smirked, as they all slowly smiled.

"Dude..." Beastboy suddenly had a very serious expression on his face. "This is the greatest spagetti, in the history of spagetti." I laughed, and started eating my own.

"Told you I could cook."

"So... where'd you learn how to cook anyway?" asked Raven.

"My... family." he said carefully, not wanting to give anything away. Before he could be questioned further, the doors burst open.

"Hey, guys!" Tim Drake was here.

*uneventful chapter yes, but it'll pick up the pace soon, i promise! :) reviews are very helpful :)


	6. tours, talks, and trauma

"Hey, Tim!" I called, walking over to him.

"Hey Ri-uh, Robin." he said sheepishly, not knowing exactly what to call me. When my back was turned to the titans, I mouthed that they didn't know my identity, and he nodded in response.

"Hello friend! Please, how did you get here, where are you from what is your favorite color and do you wish to be my friend?"

"Uh... Motorcycle, Gotham City, grey, and sure! Uh... Starfire, right?"

"Yes! Come, you must meet our friends!" she pulled the poor kid over to everyone else. "That is Cyborg and Beastboy and Raven! And you seem to already know Robin?" she asked inquisitively.

"Yea, we've... met before." I'm glad he left it at that.

"So, did the Batman drop you off?" asked Beastboy, bouncing up and down. It couldn't be more obvious as to who he wanted to meet.

"Batman couldn't make it. Sunshine depresses him." I couldn't help but laugh when he said that. It couldn't be more true. Hadn't me and Babs always making jokes about that?

"I'll go show him where the guest room is." I told my friends, ushering Tim into the hallway. "So, how'd you get here so fast? I thought you said you'd get here tonight, what with your crazy math skills." I said with a smirk. He smiled and shrugged in response.

"I didn't have anything better to do, and Batgirl practically kicked me out of the Batcave, so I ended up leaving yesterday and stopping at a hotel about half way here."

"Ah. Makes sense. Why was Babs kicking you out?"

"Cause she wanted me far away before Bruce was anywhere near Gotham. She didn't want to have to deal with him flipping out at her and going and following me here, incase he came home early. But telling him I'm on the other side of the country shouldn't be a problem for a few more days."

"Good. I have a feeling that won't be a fun conversation for either of us."

"Yea, he'll flip at me for leaving without his permission, and then flip out at you for permanantly leaving." I knew he was joking around, but I knew the second thing wouldn't be true.

"Not so sure about the second one." I told him bitterly. "I mean, he's glad I left."

"Not true!"

"Uh, yea true! I was replaced not even a month after I left! And by a criminal no less!"

"Criminal?"

"Yea. How do you think Batman found Jay? He was stealing the wheels off the Batmobile!"

"Seriously?"

"Yes! It sucks! The guy took everything! My name, my costume, he even took my place as Batman's son! Completely!"

"What do you mean?" asked Tim. It was hard to tell, but he seemed to be slightly nervous. I just chalked it up to him being in a completely new place about as far as he legaly can get from home.

"Well, what do you think the first thing Bruce did was?"

"Um... put the wheels back on the batmobile?" I rolled my eyes.

"Besides that." he shrugged. "First thing he did was adopt Jay."

"Well, that doesn't mean he's replacing you..."

"Uh, yea it does."

"How so?"

"I'm just some dumb little foster kid. I lived at the manor for about... five? Six years? And did the thought ever once cross Bruce's mind to adopt me? Nope. And what does Bruce tell everyone when they noticed I wasn't showing up to school? That I was at a stinking boarding school in another country! If I ever wanted to go back to Gotham, could I? Nope! Because Bruce made it so that if I came back, I'd have to make some lame excuse! And when Jason came... I knew I wasn't welcome."

"Oh... well, even so... I think he sort of misses you. I mean, he's always comparing me to you. When I first started training, sometimes I'd catch him under his breath saying things like, 'Dick wouldn't do that.' Got kind of annoying though, when he almost called me Richard. It stunk. But he never compared me to Jason... strange..." he looked pointedly at me. I just shrugged in response. "What ever happened to him, anyway?"

I froze, not sure if I should answer or not. But, if Tim was really working with Babs and Bruce... he desserved to know. "Jason was killed..."

"Well, I figured that..."

"By the Joker." His eyes widened in shock, and he almsot seemed affraid to find out more. But still he asked. "Jason had been living on the streets before Bruce found him. He was an orphan. When Bruce adopted him, he tried using some of the tecnology in the Batcave to find his mom, who was still alive. He narrowed it down to three people. One of those people, his real mom, was held hostage, and was being blackmailed by Joker. He was estatic to find her, as anyone would be. But then Joker came.

"To keep his identity a secret, he had to pretend not to know his mother, which was easy enough to do, as they'd just met. But then... it took a turn for the worst. He freed his mother, who ran out of the building, not once looking back. Jason wasn't very good at hand to hand combat. At some point, Jay got his hands cuffed, lost his utility belt, and Joker brought out a crowbar. He started beating Jason with it, until he stopped fighting back. He just layed there, while Joker broke his bones, bloodied him up... his last act of defiance, was when Joker got down in front of him, and Jay spat blood in his face.

"The Joker left Jay there. He was weak from loss of blood, and the broken bones, but still he got up. He tried to get to the door, leave. Joker locked him in. When he turned around, that's when he noticed. There was a time bomb. He couldn't get out...

"Bruce was looking for him, having being sent an... invitation. But when he got to the building... that's when it exploded. He searched through the rubble for Jay, but when he found him... he was already dead." Tim's mouth hung open, wide eyed. I couldn't blame him. I'd had the exact same reaction when Barb called me, telling me what'd happened.

"That explains so much..."

"Explains what?"

"Why Bruce doesn't let me or Barb anywhere near Joker. We always end up with Harley and the lankeys." I nodded, and opened the door to the guest room.

"Well, here it is."

"Sweet. Thanks." I nodded. Suddenly, red lights started blazing, and the alarm sounded.

"Trouble! Suit up!" I called to Tim, and raced down the hallway. When I got to the mainframe, the rest of my friends were already there, Raven typing away at the keys.

"Who is it?" I asked her.

"Dr. Light." as we raced out of the room, I heard Tim coming in.

"You don't have to come if you wana get settled in," I called to him, "It's just Dr. Light. This should take about ten minutes tops."

"Okay..." his voice trailed off as I left. I never looked back. Maybe I should have. Maybe it's for the best that I didn't. I don't know. But I do know now, that if I had looked back, I would've seen a kid that looked almost identical... to me.

*So, love? hate? wish to shred to pieces? let me know!


	7. lightbulbs and heart to hearts

"Dudes! Were getting our buts kicked! By a walking lightbulb," shouted Beastboy, as he got slammed into a wall.

It looked like Dr. Light decided to get a major upgrade, curtousy of Dr. Chang. And like Beastboy said, we were being defeated. Badly. Beastboy, Starfire and I were bruised and cut up pretty badly from being smashed into walls and hit by bursts of light. Cyborg was in pieces, literally, and Raven wasn't even fighting, being too busy healing everyone while trying to put Cyborg back together. I looked up and saw Starfire smash into another wall. We needed backup. Badly.

"Tim? You there?"

"Robin?"

"Yea. Listen, Dr. Light got an upgrade. We need back up. We need you to get here as fast as you can!"

"Okay. Hold on a sec. Where are you all?"

"Uh... like, right outside the tower?"

"Oh. That guy must be dumb, if he's basically walking up to your house..."

"Yea. Dumb, but with a power suit."

"Okay. Be there in a sec." He wasn't lying on his timing. A few seconds after I put away my communicator, a batarang wizzed by, and Dr. Light, who had been spouting out cheesy puns rather than paying attention, was hit with it. His force feild was now broken. I looked over to where the batarand had come from, but Tim was already gone. Suddenly, an explosive disk came from the other side of Dr. Light, and he again went flying. When he landed, I noticed his suit was broken. Tim had single handedly defeated him. As Raven carted him off to jail, I looked for Tim.

"Good shot man!"

"Yea, Light totally wasn't expecting that dude!"

"It wasn't me. Tim's the one that shot the batarang. And the explosive disk."

"Really?"

"Yea. Where'd he go?"

"I don't know. I didn't see him at all. Though, he must be wearing something red too, cause I could've sworn I saw you through the Batarang." Strange... I thought to myself. Of course, I wouldn't have a clue as to what his uniform looked like, seeing as I don't even know what his name is.

"No, he's the one who stopped Dr. Light. I'm gonna go find him..." I walked into the tower, feeling like something wasn't right. I knew I could trust Tim, I mean, he was working with Bruce and Barbara, but... his having a similar costume? Penguin sounding like he'd faught me recently? He couldn't have meant Jason, everyone knows that Joker killed him. Something just didn't add up...

I searched for Tim, first looking on the roof, then in the living room and kitchen. The others hadn't seen him, so I went to look for him in his room.

"Tim? You there?" I asked, knocking on his door. "Yea, I'm here. Come on in." I opened the door, and was surprised to find Tim back in civilian clothes, reading a book. I stared at him, confused. "What? Is reading like, illegal in California?"

"No, it's just... why aren't you in your costume anymore?"

"Because I changed out of it?" I rolled me eyes.

"Well, obviously, but why'd you change out of it? This isn't like Gotham, where you're civillian during the day. Crimes go on here 24/7."

"Oh... right..."

"So, why aren't you in your costume? Do you just not like it, or..." suddenly, a new thought crossed my mind. "Or are you hiding something?"

"I like my costume..." I realized he hadn't answered to my second question.

"Tim, get your costume..." he nodded, seeming quite worried. I didn't understand why, until he pulled it out of his suitcase. Though his costume was red and black, and his cape was much shorter, it was still much to recognisable. It was _my_ costume. A _Robin_ costume. Suddenly, I realized why he had been avoiding me.

"Tim..."

"I'm sorry okay? I'll leave if you want me to-"

"Tim? What would make you think that? I just want to know why you didn't tell me."

"Well, I was going to when you were talking to me and Babs, but then she kept cutting me off, and I got all confused. When you logged off, she explained a little about how mad you were about Jason taking your name, but I didn't believe her. So then I was going to tell you, but then I brought up Jason, and you told me what Babs told me, about how you were mad that he stole your name and stuff, and that he was a criminal first, so I figured you'd hate me and get mad if I told you, so-"

"Tim. I'm not mad at you."

"You're not?"

"No."

"But I thought-"

"Just listen for a second." He nodded, and I tried to collect my thoughts, and say something logical. "It wasn't that I was mad about Jason using the _name_ Robin. It's just... I guess I was jelous of him. And so I ended up pushing him away to the point where he though I hated him."

"Jelous?" Tim asked, confused. I nodded.

"See, when Bruce found Jay, the poor guy was on the streets, alone... Bruce offered him a home. Just like he had offered me a home. He also saw the potential in Jason, and trained him. He trusted Jason more, told him the secret, while I had to find out on my own. I guess I felt like I was being replaced by Bruce as a son. I mean, Bruce always called me his... his_ ward._ From day one Jay was his son. I mean, _Bruce_ actually_ laughed_ at his jokes. He was great at everything, while I was a circus orphan. He was Mr. Perfect. So yea, I was insanely jelous of him. And when I found out that he was using the 'Robin' title, it was just pouring salt into an open wound."

"Oh... I think I understand now..." Said Tim, nodding. "But one thing still confuses me. How come you aren't mad at me, or resentful of my existance, like you were with Jason?"

"I've learned from my mistakes," was my simple response. He still seemed a bit nervous. "Something else bothering you?"

"Well, as long as we're telling all, I think it'd be better if you hear it from me than from the media. Bruce is adopting me." I nodded. I had figured as much, but hadn't been sure.

"Come on. I'll go find the others while you change into your uniform, and then we'll both fill them in on the whole Gotham/Zucco thing."

"Got it!" And I couldn't help but smile to myself, realizing that Tim really felt like a little brother.

Sooooooooooooo a nice lil brother bonding :) hope you like it, and sorry for not updating sooner- school's a drag. xp. reviews are good motivation though ;)


	8. explinations, freakouts, and a scared BB

Author's Note: Sorry for taking so long! I blame school and my own lazyness! In case you're wondering about Tim's explination to the titans, I mixed his origins from the comics and from the shows in a way that made more sense. Sorry if it confuses anyone who does know his origin strictly from either the comic or the shows!

"Kay, so dude, why'd you call us in here? I was just about to beat mega monkeys 5!"

"Because, we need to talk to all of you."

"We?"

"Tim and I. We need to explain why he's here in the first place."

"Where is Tim anyway?" asked Starfire, sitting down.

"Here," he said timidly, walking through the door. All my friends stared at him for a moment. Just a moment. Then the questions started.

"Dude, are you borrowing one of Robin's old costumes or something?"

"Why are you wearing such similar costumes?"

"This is going to be really confusing, isn't it?"

"Are you both using the name Robin, or are your costumes just the same?"

"Guys, one at a time!" I called out exasperated. They immediately silenced.

"I think y'all have some explaining to do," said Cyborg, eyebrow raised. The other's nodded their agreement. I let Tim do the talking.

"Okay, so... I also have taken up the Robin mantle."

"But why did you not think up a different name? Surely there are many other creatures whom you could have named yourself after."

"See, it's kind of a long story...

"When Robin - well, hold up, I need to go back to the begining. I lived in Gotham my whole life. And not in one of the greatest parts either, but I had an okay life for the most part. Eventually, I became obsessed - obsessed with Batman, that is. I thought he was pretty neat. Going out, fighting crime, all to make Gotham a better place for everyone. I wondered who he was, if he even was anyone else.

"I noticed the Bat was pretty darn depressing though. Even when Batgirl came around, he wasn't exactly known in the papers as the cheery type. Then Robin - your Robin - came. He seemed to make Batman a little happier, perkier. They still called him the Dark Knight, sure, but they stopped with the whole 'Mr. Moody and Gloomy' stuff. I even saw him smile once at one of Robin's jokes when they were fighting outside of my appartment complex."

"Wait a second! ROBIN? JOKE? SAME SENTENCE?" Shouted Beastboy, and I rolled my eyes in responce, though he didn't see that.

"Yea. It can happen." He shook his head in disbelief. "Anyway..." I urged Tim on.

"So, the Bat was lightening up. I figured it was due to Robin. I idolized the two of them, Batgirl too. I wanted to be just like them. I kept any articles from newspapers I found of them, all trying to figure out the mystery. One day I did.

"I was walking home from school, when I saw Robin chasing after a thug that had slipped loose from a fight. I followed from a distance with some of my friends, curious. That's when I figured it out. Robin did what I suppose you could call a... special trick."

"Which-?" I prompted.

"The quadrouple-..."

"Ah." I cut him off knowing exactly what he was talking about- the quadrouple flip, a trick that's been in my family for generations that nobody else has figured out.

"My friends thought it was cool, but to me, it was evidence- that one trick had given me enough evidence to figure out who he was. And with that, I figured who Batman and Batgirl were."

"All from a trick?"

"Pretty much, but then things changed. Robin disapeared. Never saw him in the city again. Batman went back to being all emo, and anyone rarely spotted Batgirl. I figured it was because Batman didn't let her. He went back to working solo for a month or so, then there was a new Robin."

"You?" inferred Raven. Tim turned to me, silently asking how much he could reveal. I nodded hezitantly, after all, what did it matter now? The guy was dead.

"No. Someone else. A guy, J.T." I was greatful he didn't say Jason's real name. But then, again, things changed."He go 'missing' as well? Leave the city?" asked Cyborg, and I whinced, knowing their responce wouldn't be pleasant.

"No... he was killed."

Before they had a chance to ask about details, I simply stated, "The Joker You don't want to know." That shut them up.

"So, Batman was way depressed by then, and you could tell. And any time he faught the Joker... lets just say there was a lot of damage done. He was reverting to his old ways, shutting people out, in both identities of his. That's when fate interviened. See, my mom was dead. My dad had skipped town months before, affraid of a guy coming after him."

"Who?" asked Beastboy, rather naiievely. "The Joker?"

"No, someone just as bad though." He looked directly at me. "Twoface." A shiver ran down my spine remembering the man. Harvey Dent. Our encounter from a few days ago had served a firm reminder as to why I hated him so badly. "He went after me, because my dad used to work with him. He had left a key to somewhere or other and a note in my possession. That's the last I heard of him. Batman saved me, and took me to the Batcave not knowing what else to do with me. I told him I knew who he was. He didn't believe me until I told him.

"Batgirl showed up a little bit later, and they both left to go after Twoface. I was stuck there in the Batcave. Batman had already said no to me working with him. He refused to train me. But then I had an idea, and I was pretty tempted by the costume over in the case... I found where Batman was fighting, and followed them there in your Robin's old costume.

"Batman was livid, as you could've guessed. But I held my own mostly... well, until I got knocked unconcious by some thug. Batman and Batgirl ended up beating Twoface, shipping him off to jail. I got a long lecture, but in the end, he let me train with him. Robin called me asking me to come, and well, now here I am." He turned the mini-lecture over to me.

"But why did you call for Tim to come?" Asked Starfire. I knew things would get interesting now...

"I called Batman for help. Batman wasn't there," _thank goodness... _"But Batgirl and Tim were. I asked for a list of recent escapees from Arkam, in case more of the crazies decided to follow the trend over here to Jump."

"Who else could we be dealing with then?"

"Some of the most dangerous Gothamites: The Riddler, Scarecrow, Ivy-"

"She's our age, right? I've heard she's totally-" Before Beastboy could finish his sentence, Raven wacked him upside the head.

"Who else?" she asked.

"The Joker." An audiable gasp was heard from my friends, and I couldn't blame them. The Joker was a monster that haunted even Batman's dreams... "But that's not why Tim came."

"Who could be worse than the Joker?" asked Raven. I heaved a sigh, not knowing how to answer very well..

"Well, not exactly worse than the Joker, I mean, psychotic wise, and this guys a lot less dangerous than the Joker, it's just... I found out a... _particular_ psycho I hold a **VERY** high grudge against has gotten out of jail somehow. And I need to do everything in my power to make sure he's at the very _least_ put back in jail."

"Who?" asked Starfire, naiievely. I'm sure she thought it was another psycho, someone with powers and a brain, and totaly crazy, not exactly who I was thinking.

Feeling like acid on my tongue, I spat out the name. "Tony Zucco."

"Seriously dude? Just some random thug? And no offence to him dude, but why did'ja need Tim to come? I mean, for the Joker, we could probably use all the help we could get, but just some random dude?" Out of the corner of my eye, I could've sworn I saw Tim flinch, as if he knew about the explosion about to happen.

"He is NOT just some random thug!" I seethed, and my glare directed at the changeling didn't go unnoticed. "Zucco may not be as psychotic as the Joker, or as strong as Bane, or even half as smart as the Riddler, but the thing is- Zucco still destroys lives!

"He's psychotic in a different kind of way! He's a sadistic bastard! He destroys families, ruins dreams! The most dispicable creature to set foot on this planet!" I knew I should stop, but I couldn't stop the words from tumbling from my mouth. That's how much I hated Zucco. "And you know why he does what he does? What his motivation is? Nothing. Nothing accept the pain of others, and his own greed.

"I hate him, more than should be humanly possible, I hate this... this _monster_."

"There must be some sliver of good in him, no matter how small..." mumbled Starfire hopefully. Her and her optomism...

"No. Not even close. He's crossed too many lines, far too many lines. He's a murdering psycho!" I saw the looks of concern on my friends faces, wondering what this guy had done to get me so angry.

"And thanks to him... I almost crossed that line as well..." I hung my head in shame. I cleared my head, and went back to buisness.

"So anyway, Tim's here to help out with all the usual psychos and the added Gothamites, so I have time to find Zucco. Before he slips into the shadows... just like last time..."

"Okay, so you want to track this dude. So what? Why do you want to catch him so bad? The cops could probably handle him, or we could help-"

"No. I don't want to drag all of you into this. This is something I have to deal with alone."

"Why! So you can go all obsessive again, just like with Slade?" Beastboy shouted. He was pissed. But so was I. I turned to face him, my face showing no trace of emotion. My voice was cold.

"You want me to tell you why I hate him so much? Why it's so important I catch him? Then will you leave me alone?" Beastboy nodded, and when I answered I couldn't help but let some of my anger, frustration and pure terror out.

"Why do I want to catch Zucco? Why? He _ruined_ my life! One day I was a happy-go-lucky kid with a great life, and the next?" My voice cracked as I continued. "The next, I was sitting on a bed in an orphanage, crying my eyes out! He destroyed my whole world, shattered it into a million pieces! He did it all with a smile, and made me watch!"

"I want..._ need,_ to catch Zucco... because... because he's the asshole that murdered my parents!" I stormed out of the room, leaving Tim to deal with my shocked-faced friends.

*so, love? hate? want to smash in a zillion pieces more than robin wants to smash zucco's skull in? wish to hang like a diploma? let me know please!


	9. oh, for the love of gotham!

I stormed out of the room feeling my friends' eyes on me. Sure I felt bad about my outburst, but at the same time... I really did hate Zucco that much. I still do. I always will. And I felt a little bit better knowing my friends knew the full story... well, most of it anyway. As I walked down the hall, I heard my friends muffled voices behind the door.

"Why'd you have to push him like that, man?"

"How was I supposed to know the dude killed his parents?"

"You weren't, but that's not the point."

"Robin's our leader, why can't you just shut your mouth for once, and trust his decisions?"

"We don't have any reason to trust him! You were there when he had that whole stunt with Slade! You were there when he became Red X! We don't even know what his face looks like! He could walk out, fight us as a villian, and come home and we wouldn't even know it!"

"Just give him some space. You guys can trust him, I'm sure of it. And don't worry, he won't stay mad long. He's just like Batman and Batgirl described him to me, I can tell." Hearing that made me stop for a second. What _had_ Batman told him? Whatever it was, it couldn't be good. I continued down to the gym, planning on letting out some steam. The previous conversation dug up memories I had tried to lock away. Memories of Zucco. That creep.

The alarm suddenly started wailing, rather annoyingly. I sighed, and ran back to the main room. Fight aside, I had to lead this team. "Who is it?" I asked, watching Raven type away at the computer.

"They're coming up as unknown. It must be one of your friends from Gotham," she said ruefully. "They've got a few hostages, holding up the bank. Sound familiar?"

"Sounds like every creep within city limits," Tim said smirking. "I'll come incase I'm needed." I nodded my approval.

"Just stick to the shadows, we'll keep you updated through the comm. link. Come on!" My friends followed me, them piling into the T-Car, and myself on my R-Cycle. Tim followed on his own motorcycle, in civilian. He'd blend right in, and have his costume need be.

We reached the targeted bank about 10 minutes later, and went over to the police comissioner. "Who's in there? Report said there were hostages?"

"Well, there were... we have reason to believe they've been moved."

"Moved?" asked Beastboy. "Like, they got teleported somewhere, or...?"

"Like a cammoflaged helicopter flew away from the building. The only reason we knew about it was that a plane had been flying overhead at the time, and saw it on the radar."

Raven, as usual, had a dry remark or two. "Well, that's just super. We've got no proof that the badguys are even in there still, or the hostages. For all we know, they're on a cammoflaged helicopter headed for Aruba. Great."

"Any bomb threats, or...?" Cyborg trailed off, looking for some answers.

"Bomb squad went in there a few minutes ago, but they're taking a bit longer as a precaution, depending on the hostage situation. They should be calling in any minute. We don't think there's a bomb there, but we aren't ruling it out." I nodded at the commisioner, as did my friends. We stood in silence, neither sides trying to start a conversation. We got along, sure, and he was a nice guy, but I suppose I've always been a bit cold towards him. He was no Jim Gordon.

_"Bomb squad to commish! We've found something in here, but we aren't sure if it's a threat! Also, there's no sign of the hostages!" _came the disembodied voice of one of the bomb sqad team.

"This is the commissioner, report! What'd you find?"

_"Nothing I've ever seen before. Big box, sorta glowing. Only one of us that's gotta clue as to what it is, is Jimmy- said he'd seen something like it before, back in Gotham. He couldn't place what it was though, since he was only in the precinct over in good ol' Gotham for a month or so."_

"The titans are here, would you like me to send them in?"

_"Don't know if it'll do much good with them here. Scanners are saying it's clean, but there's definately something inside. We aren't sure how to open it though. So unless one of em' has X-ray vision, I don't know what they could do."_

"Any X-Ray vision?" he asked with a smirk. We shook our heads.

"Didn't the guy say someone recognised it from Gotham?" I Robin quietly.

"Yea, you recognise the handywork fromt the discription? You're from Gotham, aren't you? Worked with the Bat there, right?" A bit tensely, I nodded. I couldn't stand being afiliated with Batman, but at least the commish hadn't asked if I was his sidekick...

"Sounds familiar. You want us to head in?"

"Be my guest."

"Come on!" I called to my friends, who seemed a bit out of it. Why...? Oh. I didn't say the usual 'titans go.' Whatever, it was getting old. As we walked in, Tim asked for an update.

"If it's who I think it is, it'll be better if you aren't seen. Not yet anyway."

"Who is it? Gothamite?"

"Yup. Big glowing box that can't be opened, glowing, and probably covered in question marks if I've got it right. Sound familliar?" I could almost sense Tim smirking on the other end of the line.

"Hmm, gonna take a wild guess here... Who's one of the smartest Gothamites, yet one of the stupidest, commits crimes, and then leads us to the answers?"

I smiled. "Edward Nygma. The Riddler."

*sorry bout the uneventfullness of the chappy, but the next one will be a fun one, I promise you that :D


	10. double vision

**A/N: Most of these riddles are from the original Batman: The Animated Series, The Batman, or even crazy stuff like: dun dun dun! The live action Batman show with crazy campyness, staring Burt Ward! Oh, um... and Adam West as Batman... yea... but they had some good riddles, seeing as the riddler was their main villian... moving on...**

"Rob? The Riddler?"

"Pretty self explanatory, but he's a whole new kind of crazy. He leaves clues in the form of riddles or puzzles to give hints about his crime."

"Well that's stupid!" exclaimed Beastboy. "Why would you leave clues? Is he trying to get captured?"

"That's why he's so crazy. But be careful what you say. If you get the riddle wrong, he usually blows up a bridge or hurts someone, or tries to kill you." I switched to my comm. link. "Tim? How are you at riddles?"

"Damn good if I say so myself!" I heard back, and smirked.

"Okay, we're going in."

"Copy! By the way, do we have any reason for why all of Gotham's over here?"

"Not a clue. Penguin was here because some statue thing was, and he wanted revenge. Twoface... well, he just wanted to kill me. But nothing new there."

"Ugh. Same. Hate the guy. Of course, it's thanks to him I ended up in the biz. Had something against my old man. I'll tell you about it later. Where's the box?"

"There it is..." I muttered, seeing it. It was about five feet tall, and hovering somehow.

"Rob, what is it?" I smirked. This would be too easy...

"It's a rubix cube. The first Riddle's probably inside," I told them.

"Okay, but dude! How are we supposed to do a rubix cube in time? It'll take forever and ever! It's not like any of us know how to solve a rubix... cube...?" Beastboy trailed off, seeing that I'd already solved it. "DUDE! How'd ya do that?" I just smiled and waved him off, not bothering to tell him that part of my logic training with old man bats was learning to solve one of these in less than thirty seconds. Or that the Riddler's used this trick before.

The computer screen hidden inside the box swiveled to face us, and the Riddler himself was there. "Hello, titans. Bird brain. It's been quite some time, hasn't it?"

"Enough with the nostalgia, what do you want? Where are the hostages?"

"Haven't you learned by now that you need patience? That you should use your head? I suppose not. Your logic was always a bit off too... but who am I to judge?" I saw my team mates rolling their eyes, as if this was all pointless conversation. Tim and I on the other hand were listening closely. Everything the Riddler says is part of a riddle of some sort. "So riddle me this bird brain, what does no man want to recieve, but no man want to loose?" And the screen went blank.

"That's almost too easy. A law suit!" Cyborg thought aloud. "So, what does that have to do with anything?"

"His clues point to either more riddles, or to his location," Tim explained, as he suddenly appeared wearing his costume. The others all jumped, but I just smiled.

"3.42." Is all I said, as Tim frowned and the others faces' scruntched up in confusion.

"Was I that obvious?"

"No. But keep in mind I had the same training as you. But you managed to stay off of Cyborg's radars, and Raven didn't sense you. That's pretty good."

"Wait, what?" asked Beastboy.

"He means he knows that I've been here for the last couple of minutes. 3 minutes, 42 seconds, to be exact." He smirked. "Showoff."

"Like you haven't done the same to Barb-uh, Batgirl!" Seeing the others staring, and Raven getting impatient, I changed subject. "So, a law suit."

"Does he mean that the next clue would be in a court house or somethin'?" Guessed Cyborg.

"Unless you want to get more literal," Raven thought aloud. "A law _suit._ As in clothing wise."

"So, are there any major clothing stores around here?" asked Tim.

"Oh! That I believe to be my area of expertice!" exclaimed Star. Raven got a look of absolute dread on her face, realizing Starfire meant the mall. "I have often seen men wearing the suits of buisness walking into one particular store in the mall, called the 'Suit Imporium'. Directly accross from it is-"

"The Rent-a-Cop lounge-office-thingy!" Beastboy finished.

"Is the Riddler's logic always this... weird?" asked Raven, and I could tell she was wondering whether or not she should try to escape.

"Yep! That's the fun part!" announced Tim, as Raven groaned in response. We left to find the Riddler, and this 'Suit Imporium." The mall was supposed to be closed already, but one quick scan of the enterance showed the night janitor tied up in the corner, mouth gagged. We untied the gag, and he immediately started babbling.

"This guy, he was wearin' all this green and question marks and stuff! His thugs came in with em! I don't even know what he wants, or whats goin' on, but next thing ya know he's throwin puzzles at me! Literally!"

"What do you mean, literally?" asked Cyborg, stepping foreward.

"I mean, that whatever's tyin' me up started out as one a 'em chinese finger trap things!"

"Welcome to your first taste of the Riddler!" said Tim-Robin with a smirk, shifting position slightly, so that now he was under the light.

Catching sight of him, the janitor's eyes widened. "Wait a sec, there's two of ya!" He exclaimed, and then immediately passed out. I'm sure this had been a heck of a night for him. I turned to Tim.

"Smooth move, genious."

"How was I supposed to know he was gonna react so crazy?" he asked nonchalantly.

"Maybe the fact that most people think you and Batman are a myth?" answered Raven. "You heard his accent, he probably was _from _Gotham. To see multiple Robin's along with a team of metas, and a supervillian might cause a strong reaction."

"Dude, was he even supposed to know there's more than one Robin?"

"Does it matter? We've gotta get Riddler!" shot back Tim, annoyed that Beastboy and the others were wasting time. Come to think of it, so was I.

"Okay then, Cyborg and Beastboy, find out who he is and take him home before he wakes up. Make it seem like a dream. There wasn't a car in the lot, so he must live nearby. Starfire, Raven, Tim and I will go after the Riddler. Meet up with us ASAP." Cyborg scooped up the passed out janitor, and ran off with Beastboy, who had already located his drivers license. We went to the next clue. Again, we were met by a screen, the Riddler nowhere to be found.

"Well done, titans, though it took you longer than I pressumed. Tell me titans, what is it? The more you have of it, the less you see."

"Simple. That would be darkness," Raven correctly assumed.

"Quite right, m'lady. Fitting, isn't it? That you'd be the one to find the darkness. Devils spawn, are you not?"

"Leave her alone, Nygma!" I warn, not up for his games. I was _supposed _to be tracking down Zucco. Not cleaning up after him. Tim being Robin just complicates and confuses things. There's no way to explain him without a media frenzy.

"My my, more like your old man by the minute! But I'd watch your tone, if you'd like those hostages back safe and sound."

"You wouldn't _dare_." I hiss. "You've never taken a life."

"Me? Goodness no, but my hired help on the other hand?" he chuckled, further deepening our annoyance. This was going to be a long night.

***yea i know, wasn't that good, but honestly i'm kinda stuck on this story. i know where i want it to go, but the riddler's rather annoying to write. suggestions are more than welcome!**


	11. Numbing

**A/N: That's right, I'm showing my face in this fandom again *avoids popcorn and tomatoes thrown at the silly author not updating the story* sorry! busy busy busy and dats da truff! (in all honestly, I want to murder one of my teachers at the moment - made me start the whole effin project over a week before it wasw due. ughh... And I hope you guys weren't too fond of the riddler. He's got me in a rut, so he's going byebye. Enjoy!**

**Actually, don't go anywhere! I gots a challenge for you! Yea, you with the face! As you can tell by the story's summary, I stink at writing summaries. If anyone can think of a good summary for this story, I'll write them a one-shot of their choice. Can be about ANYTHING in the Teen Titans or Young Justice fandom. :) Oh yea, Summary Contest yea!**

"Ughh. Dude!" Exclaimed Beastboy as he lethargically shuffled into the main room of the tower. "And the Riddler is supposed to be one of the SANER Gotham villains?"

"The Riddler actually IS completely sane, Beastboy. He just has a fetish for enygmas," I explain.

He clutched his skull in exasperation."You must be crazy then for putting up with him! Why bother?"

"If us wackos don't protect Gotham, who's gonna protect the handful of good people from the other wackos?" Tim shot back. "It's not like we're dealing with the scum in Bludhaven." I sheepishly rubbed the back of my neck - I had almost gone to start over in Bludhaven instead of Jump City, but ultimately picked Jump as my final destination because of it's farther location.

We had just gotten back from our all-night Riddler fiasco. The hostages were all fine, (including the dog) and the Riddler and his lankeys had been rounded up. But I was no closer in catching Zucco, and we still had no reason for why all of Gotham was suddenly hanging out in California. I needed to focus on Zucco though. I wouldn't let him get away. Not again. "Guys, go get some rest. It's been a long day. We can push back training to tomorow afternoon."

This announcement was enough for Beastboy to suddenly have enough energy to pump his fist in the air and shout out with glee. I watched as Raven rolled her eyes, and Starfire let a weak smile grace her face. Everyone started to leave. Finaly, I'd be able to focus on-

"I take it you aren't going to bed?" Cyborg asked, eyebrow raised. "You know, you need sleep as much as the rest of us." I smirked.

"That's what caffine is for. I'll go to bed soon, I promise. I just... I need to work on catching Zucco. I told you, he murdered my parents. That's not something I'm gonna let him get away with. I'm not letting him walk free. I won't let him. I won't let him force any other kids to feel as alone as I was."

"Alright man, and I get that. Really, I do. But you won't be doin' anyone any favors by killing yourself from lack of sleep." He left, and again I was alone. The monitor I was working on soon flashed to life - armed robbery down on fourth street. I turned off the alarm before it could wake the others. I could handle this. They needed to sleep. I just needed some peace.

Sure, in retrospect a robbery isn't the best place to go looking for 'peace' but I WAS raised in Gotham. And tempting fate is what I do best. So I took off on my motorcycle, the coordinates already memorized.

_Zooming down the dock, bike skidding, Zucco trailing behind. _No. I wouldn't think about - _dangling over the water, begging for mercy. 'What did I ever do to you, bird brain?' _

No! Not the time to - '_You wanna know what you DID? Does Haley's Circus ring a few bells, you murdering scum! I knew them! They were family! Bet you weren't counting on THAT.' _

_'Please! I'll do anything! Please don't kill me!' _

_Ready to die- 'Robin._' Batman was all that stopped me from killing Zucco then. Whats to stop me from killing Zucco when I find... him... standing not ten yards in front of me... I jump off the bike, which crashes into Zucco's getaway car. His thugs are inside, robbing the bank.

He's staring right at me, smirk on his face. "Robin," his gravelly voice rings out, "Long time no see, eh? I knew you'd come alone, bat brat."

His voice perylized me. Frozen from fear or anger I wasn't sure. Here I was all ready to stop a robbery then look for his sorry ass, but now... I wasn't expecting this. His sudden moves alert me to the fact that him and his thugs are armed. But it's not a gun he pulls out. Not at first.

He throws a long tube to me, which I catch out of instinct, hoping to god it's not a bomb. "Well? Open it."

I wasn't stupid. I discreetly scanned it for explosives. Totaly safe. I took off the lid, and a poster fell out of the tube. I look at his smile, containing more malice than I remember.

Picking up the poster, I see that it's faded and yellowing, but not old fashioned. Starting to unroll it, I immediately see what it is.

Zucco's face is no longer angry or vengeful. Its covered in outright _glee._

He knows.

My trembling hands drop the poster, advertizing the 'Fabulous Flying Graysons!' My parents. Me.

He knows everything.

"Tell your parents I say 'hi', kid." Before I can react or even process what's going on, the thugs are grabbing my arms and legs, and a familiar scent comes from the cloth placed over my mouth and nose. Chloroform.

I'm screwed.


	12. meltdown

**FINALLY! INTERNET IS BACKKK! :D MAN IT IS GOOOD TO BE HERE :D HAHAHA. **

**Congratz to the summary conest winner: DYlogger :) Jest review what you'd like your oneshot-prize to be about, and it'll be ready asap :) This chappy's for you!**

**ENJOY :D**

CH 12

_He's staring right at me, smirk on his face. "Robin," his gravelly voice rings out, "Long time no see, eh? I knew you'd come alone, bat brat."_

_His voice paralyzed me. Frozen from fear or anger I wasn't sure. Here I was all ready to stop a robbery then look for his sorry ass, but now... I wasn't expecting this. His sudden moves alert me to the fact that him and his thugs are armed. But it's not a gun he pulls out. Not at first._

_He throws a long tube to me, which I catch out of instinct, hoping to god it's not a bomb. "Well? Open it."_

_I wasn't stupid. I discreetly scanned it for explosives. Totally safe. I took off the lid, and a poster fell out of the tube. I look at his smile, containing more malice than I remember._

_Picking up the poster, I see that it's faded and yellowing, but not old fashioned. Starting to unroll it, I immediately see what it is._

_Zucco's face is no longer angry or vengeful. It's covered in outright glee._

_He knows._

_My trembling hands drop the poster, advertizing the 'Fabulous Flying Grayson's!' My parents. Me._

_He knows everything._

_"Tell your parents I say 'hi', kid." Before I can react or even process what's going on, the thugs are grabbing my arms and legs, and a familiar scent comes from the cloth placed over my mouth and nose. Chloroform._

_I'm screwed._

…Or maybe not, I think to myself, as I wake up in the infirmary at Titans Tower. Wait – what? I sit up, confused. How did I…?

"Robin! You are awake!" I hear Starfire shout, as I clutch my skull in pain. Used to chloroform knock outs or not, I still end up with a killer headache afterwards.

"What… what happened after…?"

"After we found you surrounded by a bunch of ex-wrestler type thugs?" Beastboy supplied. I nodded. "Oh. Well, to start off, Cyborg heard you leave, and figured you'd be going on one of your night patrol thingy's again. Cy and Tim were both up, so they decided to go see if you needed help, since Cy kinda heard about the bank robbery before you **turned the alarm off**."

"Oh… that… heh. Sorry… Anyway…?"

"So they went to the reported robbery, and what would they find but a couple thugs inside the store, and you nowhere to be found!"

Tim continued, "So, after Cyborg and I got them knocked out and tied up, the cops came, and we went looking for you. To our surprise, you were unconscious in the alleyway next to a canister with a poster or something in it. We didn't check that yet. We found the cloth they used to K.O. you, still smelt like chloroform. We figured that's how they took you out of the picture. After the cops came, we brought you back here, and then you woke up about ten minutes later." I nodded in response, thankful that they had found me. If they hadn't, who knows what Zucco would've-

Zucco.

"So… you caught _all _of the guys?" I ask, a sense of euphoria bubbling up inside of me. They nabbed Zucco? Maybe my luck was changing!

"Yea, we grabbed all four of them!" Cyborg said, pride lacing his words. I felt my grin falter, as a sense of dread overcame me.

"All… four?"

"Yea, there were only four there when we showed up, and after we caught them they never mentioned anyone else. Were there others?" Cyborg asked, rationally.

"Was one of the guys you caught… one of them sorta tall?" I ask, cautiously.

"They were all tall."

"Creepy looking? Not too buff? Very Italian?" I interrogate, growing increasingly more frantic.

"We didn't see anyone like that," was Cyborg's response. I stared blankly out at nothingness, having an urge to either laugh or cry or scream. Or all three. Apparently my brain chose laughter, because everyone is staring at me worriedly.

"Robin?" I hear Raven ask, but I can't answer, I'm laughing too hard.

"Of… of all the ones to get away… heh… he would get away, wouldn't he? Ha! Just my luck…"

"Rob, what-" Cyborg's question was cut off by a sharp intake of breath and a string of swears coming from Tim's mouth.

"Dammit!" he shouts. "How could we miss him? We're so gonna hear it once the chloroform wears off!"

"What about the-? What are you talking about?" Beastboy asks.

"He's acting like this 'cause of the chloroform," I hear Tim explain, as I try to control my laughter. "Makes him all loopy afterwards. Read that in the Bat's files. But crap… how could we let him get away?"

"Who? Who'd we miss?" Cyborg asks him.

Tim sighs. "Zucco. Zucco got away."

He got away. _He_ got away! I laugh some more, vaguely aware that I'm starting to act quite psychotic. I guess I breathed in more chloroform then I thought. But it's not like I've got no good reason. "And that's not even the best part!"

"Robin? What are you talking about?" Raven asks, worriedly.

"Check the canister, Timmy. That should 'splain everything." Eying me wearily, he picks the canister up, and unfolds the poster rolled up inside. As soon as he unravels it enough to read the words, he drops it, as if it's poisonous. I start laughing again.

"Yea, great, isn't it? Besides the fact the he got away **again**, he knows just about… **_everything_** about me! Ha!"

I look up at the ceiling, and mumble, "What did I ever do to you?" before succumbing to slumber once again.

**Love? Hate? Wish to burn and shred into a zillion and seven pieces? Let me know :)**


	13. It's a mad mad world

**It's been a while, but I'm back! November's pretty much done, NaNoWriMo's over, and my brain has got a plot bunny overload - bring on the fanfics!**

Ch 13

"Crap. Crap. Crap. Crap. Crap!" Timothy Drake was currently pacing the length of the room, wishing pounding his head against a wall was socially acceptable. "It couldn't have been some random crazy guy to figure it out? One that nobody would believe?"

"Wait, what's going on, exactly?" Raven asked, confused. "Zucco got away, we get that. But what does he know?"

"Like bird-boy-senior said – everything. Zucco's got his I.D. in the can." He looks down at the cheap metal tube in disgust. "Literally."

Starfire gasps in surprise. "But how would a villain such as Tony Zucco come across Robin's secrets so easily?" The question didn't sit well with anyone.

"Honestly…" Tim started, "I… I don't know…"

"But I thought you knew this dude? Isn't he your city's scum?" Cyborg pointed out.

"Well, yea, but I mean, I don't really know what he's like, I wasn't really around the bat-clan when he was. When he murdered Robin's parents, and was a big fish in lovely, scummy pond that is Gotham? I was only about five or six years old… But… He's a mafia boss. I know that. He ran an extortion racket. He's got connections, but he's not too bright. So how _did_ he figure it out?"

"Well maybe whatever's on that poster has some clues as to-"

"No!" Tim stopped Cyborg, mid reach of the tube. "I mean… That's pretty much confirmation of Robin's secret I.D. if you ever had any suspicions here or there. I think it should be up to him if you find out, rather than circumstances."

"But if Robin is in danger…" Starfire started.

"It's okay. We'll figure something out. But trust me, there are some things you don't need to know."

"Yea, said so easily by the dude who already knows his secret identity," muttered a certain green changeling.

"Look, what I know is only circumstantial," Tim tried to explain.

"Yea. We get it. You're part of the freaking Bat-clan of doom. You know and are everything, whoop-tee-doo." He twirled finger sarcastically. "But we've known Robin longer, so we have just as much right to-"

"Batman didn't tell me."

"-Wait what?"

"That's what I've been _trying_ to explain, Beastboy. I only know because… I don't know, 'cause I was pretty much stalking Robin? Obsessively tracking his civilian I.D.? I recognized Robin as his civilian persona after some time, because of one little slip up. I know because I saw. I was there at the- I was there when his parents were murdered, okay?

"Look, this guys taken everything from him. His parents, his family, Batman… now his I.D. he won't be real thrilled or trusting if you guys start getting nosy. And we've got plenty else to deal with – forget about Joker having escaped? He could be here any day. Or for all we know, he already is. Or maybe he's not going to show. I don't know. But we have to prepare for that. Let robin deal with Zucco. He's a smart guy – he'll ask when he needs help."

"**That** is what I'm not too sure about," Raven avowed, truthfully. "Robin's smart – we all know that, and rely on it. But you haven't lived with him. As much as you know him, you don't _know_ him. Azar knows he's stubborn, and hates asking for help, especially when things get personal."

Tim shoulders sagged in defeat. "Alright, but that doesn't change the fact that-"

**BEEP BEEPP BEEP BEEP**

The alarm blared throughout the tower – danger.

"Who is it? Joker here already?" Tim asked, immediately alert. Checking his comm. link, Cyborg corrected him.

"Our kind of crazy. Mad Mod's causing trouble downtown. Teen Titans, go!" As the team rushed out the door, Starfire lingered behind, placing a hand on Cyborg's shoulder. "Perhaps one of us should… stay behind with Robin?" he could see the worry radiating off of her.

"Good idea." He realized about .02 seconds later she meant herself as 'one of us'. Cautiously he suggested, "How about you go ahead with the others, and I'll babysit? It'll get your mind off of things."

"But I insist, I should stay with him in the case that he should awaken and-"

"Star, you know what Mod's capable of. The team needs you more than they need me. You need to get out for a little while. Tell Raven she's in charge."

"But-"

"Star. Go. He'll be fine. I promise. Now go." Reluctantly the Tamaranian flew out the door, looking behind her a few times. With a sigh, she sped up, intent on catching up to the others.

"Raven? Are you there?" She called over the comm. links.

"Starfire? I'm here. What is it?"

"Cyborg is staying behind with Robin. He says to leave you in charge."

"Oh… okay…" she responded, confusion evident in her tone. "I assumed that you were-"

"Cyborg believed it a good idea for me to 'get my mind off of things' by coming on this mission." Raven internally sighed with relief and approval, glad Cyborg had been able to pry Starfire from the boy wonder. She could get a bit… clingy. And when she was clingy, she tended to put her own needs behind those around her.

"Alright, Starfire. Meet us on the corner of 31st and 2nd street." Putting away her comm. link, Raven began to think.

Why on earth was _she_ put in charge? Sure she was better suited than the constantly and easily hypnotized Beastboy or the sulking Tamaranian, but surely… why did Cyborg stay behind? Raven wondered. After all, she could have stayed behind just as easily… or Beastboy or Timothy, or any of the others really…

Over a private line, she called Cyborg. "Raven? What's up?"

"What's up?" she repeated, "Why in the name of Azar did you leave_ me_ in charge?" although she wouldn't admit it, a bit of panic (a _teeny_ bit of unsettledness) was starting to set in. Like she knew how to lead.

"Well who else would I leave in charge? Star's head is off in Robin land, Beastboy isn't exactly the smartest when it comes to Mod, and Tim doesn't know Mad Mod."

"But you're second in command. You should be leading," she countered. "Any of us could have stayed, with the exception of Starfire, who really needs to get out of the tower, and you, who should be leading – so why am I here and you there?"

"Don't worry, Rae. You've got this."

"You know that's not what I meant… well, mostly. What aren't you telling me?"

"I'm just… doing some research on the big names from Gotham – if Rob's busy with this Zucco guy, we need to know what we're up against with the Gothamites so we don't need a crash course from Tim every time one shows up." Though she couldn't see, he tensed up on the other end of the line, hoping she'd buy his excuse.

With a bit of grumbling, she settled for his response, and signed off. With immense relief, he looked over at the sleeping boy wonder. "Alright Rob, no more games. Time to see what you're not tellin' us…" His eyes scanned the room, finally landing on the canister holding all the answers he needed…

Starfire reached the meeting point about the same time as everyone else, thanks to her speed. They were a little out of the way, as not to draw immediate attention to themselves – after all, a frontal assault would do no good with Mad Mod's hypnosis.

After a quick bit of recon on Beastboy's part, they found that there were about a dozen and a half hypnotized hostages heralding havoc. In other words, eighteen nut balls making trouble. Those who weren't hypnotized were fleeing the scene.

"Alright, we're going to half to be sneaky about this. Mad Mod doesn't pose much of a threat without his cane. We get that, we can break the mind control over the hostages without engaging them in a fight. Despite their involvement, we must keep in mind they are innocent," Raven started to explain, more for Tim than the others.

"Okay, so we've got to sneak up on 'im, grab the cane and we're good?"

"Almost, dudes. There some bubble thingy around him. Probably won't be too happy to let us in."

"A force field? Raven, could you teleport inside it?" she shook her head at Tim. "From what I sense, it's made out of solid energy. It would take some time to get a portal through – he would probably notice quick enough. If we break his concentration though…"

"His control over the force field will diminish," Starfire ended, "Thus making it possible to get past the force field?"

"Exactly. We need a distraction, but we need to keep the hostages safe – do not engage them in a fight." Nodding, the Titans minus Raven rushed out at Mod, keeping a distance.

"Hey Captain Maple Syrup! Over here!" Beastboy shouted, sticking his tongue out at Mad Mod.

"I am not Canadian, you little snot!" he shouted back, angrily.

"Well duh," Tim said with a roll of his eyes, "You're way too rude to be Canadian – didn't you hear Weird Al's song?"

"You think you're so funny Ro- you're not Robin…?" He smirked. "What are you, supposed to be, ducky? A T.I.T.?" Everyone, (including the hypnotized) paused for a moment at his wording.

Tim opened his mouth to speak a few times, but nothing came out. "Uh… wha- what did you just call me?"

"Have you got no ears, you little nitwit? I called you a T.I.T. – Titan in Trainin'? That's what you are, isn't it? You don't even have your own name yet! You're takin' bird brain's!"

"I'm Robin too!" he started to protest, when Beastboy started rolling around in laughter.

"Dude – did he just-? He called you-? Ha!"

"What's so funny?" Mad Mod asked, angrily. You children 'ave no respect for your elders and betters!"

"You just called him a – and you don't even - ? Dude!" Beastboy incoherently spat out, tears of mirth falling from his eyes.

Starfire was as confused as Mad Mod, while Raven found it hard to keep composed, a smirk tugging at the edges of her lips as she waited stealthily behind Mod. Tim on the other hand…

"I can't believe you just called me a-? What the heck? Seriously, man? You don't just go around saying stuff like that!"

"Oh shut up, Jr. Bird brain!"

"**I'm not a Jr. hero**!" He continued to protest. "I work with Batman for cryin' out loud!"

"What ever you say, bat brat! Now the lot of you," he said, pointing at his reluctant cronies, "Get 'em!"


End file.
